Awareness for stormwater management in Gowanus, Brooklyn

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The 2,000 Gallon Project transformed commercial dumpsters into an impactful statement about stormwater management, green infrastructure, and the effects of CSO. The project activated a vacant site and neighboring streets into a cohesive and engaging experience for residents and visitors to promote environmental stewardship in Gowanus, Brooklyn.

Project Context:

Since the canal was listed as a federal Superfund Site in 2010, $500 million has been designated to clean the canal after decades of industrial and sewer contamination. But these projects can’t solve the problem completely; people also need to contribute to the solution. This initiative sought to reinforce ongoing initiatives by showing how stormwater management plays a critical role in the Gowanus cleanup.

Project Approach:

Conceived pop-up programming through workshops for neighborhood activation sites to highlight positive environmental change in Gowanus and provide out of the ordinary experiences. The 2KGP animated a vacant lot for temporary open space and environmental public programming and a distributed nursery for future Gowanus street trees, providing shade, stormwater management and beauty to streets in Gowanus.
Each dumpster can hold up to 2,000 gallons of water (the same amount of stormwater a bioswale can retain), providing a visual unit that highlights the importance of reducing personal water consumption and retaining stormwater.

Project Outcomes:

Complemented pop-up programming, deploying blue dumpsters throughout the neighborhood to promote the project, and guide residents and visitors to the site activation. Neighborhood tours invited pedestrians to discover other #2KGP dumpsters and learn how stormwater management plays a critical role in cleaning up the Gowanus Canal.